That is why I wanted to create this post, because I strongly think this game deserves more attention and I’m glad Kylotonn made this port. There’s also the issue that all racing games suffer from on the Switch — the triggers. In racing games on other consoles, analog triggers allow the player to feather the throttle, making tiny tweaks mid-corner or after a long jump to keep the car under control. This is pretty important to any serious racing game and particularly important in WRC 9. Also like WRC 8 on Switch, loading times are still rather long, and you’ll once again find yourself wanting to turn down HD rumble as soon as you start playing in handheld mode – the effect is way too strong by default and it makes a horrendous noise while you’re playing. Disappointingly, the online multiplayer situation is the same in WRC 9 as WRC 8 as well, in that it’s not available. The Clubs feature has made it over, however, allowing you to create competitions with your friends or join those open to anyone. It will certainly add some longevity to the experience for those interested. A photo mode!!!! I just love photo mode in videogames. This one is pretty nice, all the features you’d expect are there. You even have a showcase mode from the main menu, where you can select the car, weather, etc. and use photo mode. I attached a screenshot so you can get an idea of what’s possible. Gordon, Rob (30 August 2020). "WRC 9 Review: It's Time To Rally Again". Screen Rant . Retrieved 12 September 2020.

You’ll be along for the ride with the game’s different circuit categories - WRC, WRC 2, WRC 3, and Junior WRC - all of which offer up different ways of experiencing the high-octane races and strategies of the sport. Over 50 official teams (along with their official livery) are available for you to try out in the game’s 14 environments, over 110 special stages, three new rallies in Japan, New Zealand, and Kenya, as well as the special stages of Finland and Portugal rallies that were released as post-launch DLC. And let’s not forget the 15 legendary cars that are available as well. Stefan, L. (20 March 2020). "WRC 9, WRC 10 and WRC 11 have all been announced, and they're coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X". thesixthaxis.com . Retrieved 6 May 2020. In March 2019, WRC 9 was revealed as the official game of the 2020 FIA World Rally Championship alongside WRC 10. [1] It features 14 different locations (reflecting the 2020 season as it was originally intended to be run before the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many events being rescheduled or cancelled and new rallies added to the calendar), [2] including all three returning rallies, Safari Rally, Rally New Zealand and Rally Japan, with up to fifty official crews from WRC, WRC-2, WRC-3 and J-WRC available for the player to choose. The game also features fifteen more landmark vehicles from the WRC history. [3] [ bettersourceneeded] Some classic cars are available, such as the Corolla (available through DLC), Xsara, and Focus. The Corolla is one of my favorite WRC cars ever, so very happy with that!!!You can still feather throttle sort of, but it doesn’t quite work in the same way. Just tapping a button to get across a slightly larger or smaller input is never going to really work. You can also tap the brake, but this can often make the car harder to control than easier. All in all, the Switch has a major problem for any high-level racing, and WRC 9 suffers because of it. Visuals & Audio — Caution! So if you add all that to an already very good game, you simply get the ultimate WRC experience, the best rally game ever released on a handheld, period. Lots of features, topnotch gameplay, nice presentation for the Switch, it’s a 9/10 for me. Only complaint is how some shadows are handled on some stages, as they drawn right in front of the car, literally. While I don’t find it too distracting, if they could fix it that would be awesome. Still, if you want a serious racing game on Switch, the WRC series is the way to go. And the latest entry, WRC 9, is undoubtedly the best. Though understand, the improvements on last year’s WRC 8 are incremental. Visually, you perhaps won’t even notice any difference, which is disappointing as WRC 8 really wasn’t a looker. In fact, compared to their more powerful console counterparts, you could call WRC 8 and WRC 9 on Switch ugly at times. No racing game can really claim to have a story, but most have a career mode. This sees you climbing through the ranks to become the best driver there is, and WRC is no exception, aiming you at the big leagues — the World Rally Championship (that’s what WRC stands for, by the way). In terms of racing, it’s about what you’d expect: drive faster than other drivers and climb up and up until you’re at the top. Pretty simple. Pareja, Álex (7 September 2020). "WRC 9 - Análisis". IGN (in Spanish) . Retrieved 12 September 2020.

There is now depth of field in WRC 9. This might not seem like a big deal, but during replays it is like night and day with respect to the overall looks of the game. Especially on Switch where the surroundings are far from being detailed, with low resolution, etc. It really adds a lot to the aesthetics, by “hiding” some of the not-so-pretty assets.

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I’m quite surprised about the reviewers strong feelings about the trees and scenery visuals in general. There are, however, some extra trimmings that make WRC 9 much more engaging. Similar to the F1 series of games, you have to manage your team to make sure they’re well-trained and well-suited to help you through. There’s also Research & Development, a huge tree of different things to make your car better than your competitors. It’s not that excitingly presented — reminding me more of a Football Manager game than anything else — but it does add a bit of realism to this lengthy career. a b Hull, Jacob (31 August 2020). "WRC 9 - A Compelling Rally Sim That's Gone from Good to Great". Push Square . Retrieved 12 September 2020. Gardner, Matt (22 March 2020). " 'WRC 9', Confirmed For PS5 And Series X; 'WRC 10' And 'WRC 11' To Follow". Forbes . Retrieved 6 May 2020. de Izokay, L'avis (31 August 2020). "Test: WRC 9: La paisible ligne droite de Kylotonn". Jeuxvideo.com (in French) . Retrieved 12 September 2020.

WRC 9 is available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch and PC. We reviewed the Switch version with a code provided by the game’s publisher. Review - WRC9: World Rally Championship - Including Common Sense Parent's Guide". Pixel Bandits. 5 September 2020 . Retrieved 12 September 2020. New Zealand is fantastic too, particularly the sections that wrap their way along the North Island coastline, and Japan is an incredibly taxing and technical tarmac-based rally boasting a lot of raised sections of road flanked by streams and ditches that’ll totally ruin your day. However, it's fair to say that the Switch version of WRC 9 doesn't quite compare to another recent release for the title. The excellent PS5 version is certainly a better overall game, with superior visual quality, although that's undoubtedly expected given the new hardware that the PS5 is able to call on to give a smoother experience. That said, the Switch version still looks fine, even if it can't compete with the version of WRC 9 that is now available for the new console generation. The Switch has to be the worst platform for rally games simply because of the audience it is aimed at (kids, casual gamers, long-time Nintendo fans, etc.) so it clearly falls under the “never heard of it” category on this system…WRC 9, also known as WRC 9 FIA World Rally Championship, is the official racing video game of the 2020 World Rally Championship. The game is developed by French developer Kylotonn and published by Nacon. It is available for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S, released on 3 September 2020, with the Nintendo Switch version released on 11 March 2021. WRC 9 video game set for new-generation consoles". wrc.com. WRC Promoter GmbH. 20 March 2020 . Retrieved 6 May 2020.